Poisonings by a ‘silent killer’ rises

Alarming new figures show there has been a 20 per cent spike in reported carbon monoxide poisonings in Yorkshire in the past year, sparking calls for caution from health campaigners.

The new statistics, uncovered through Freedom of Information (FOI) requests to NHS trusts across Yorkshire, show there were 342 cases reported in Yorkshire in the year to June 2016.

And as it emerges the vast majority of potentially deadly cases were with children aged under 18, a mother from Yorkshire has spoken of her own heartbreak after losing her son.

“I didn’t know anything about carbon monoxide,” said Stacey Rodgers, who lost 10-year-old Dominic to carbon monoxide poisoning in 2004.

“It was a ticking time-bomb, waiting to happen. For us, there were no symptoms.”

Miss Rodgers, going to wake Dominic for school one morning, found him lifeless in his bed. It later emerged the poisonous gas had seeped through a neighbour’s wall.

The investigation, from national campaign group Project Shout, found that the biggest spike in reported poisonings in the region was in West Yorkshire, where 255 cases were reported compared to 199 the previous year – a rise of 28 per cent.

“These figures are shocking,” said Rob Lyon, campaigns director.

“We worry every day when we read about another young person who has lost their life.”